Category: Local news

(SMITHFIELD, VA)– A Virginia man allegedly had a cache of weapons, a “go box” and used a photo of President Joe Biden for target practice, according to court documents filed by federal prosecutors this week.

Brad Spafford was charged earlier in the month on a gun violation, but in a detention memo filed on Monday, prosecutors in Virginia outlined something allegedly more alarming.

When FBI agents raided Spafford’s home, they allegedly found 150 IEDs which were assessed by authorities as pipe bombs, with some marked “lethal,” a “go-bag” in the event something happened, and more pipe bombs in his room “unsecured.”

The court documents point out that Spafford had his two young children living in the house with him.

The government also found a jar with potentially explosive material kept in the fridge labeled “do not touch,” documents said.

Spafford came on the government’s radar in 2023 when a confidential source told investigators that he blew off parts of his hand while allegedly making a homemade IED in 2021, according to court documents.

The detention memo was filed to prevent Spafford from being released pending trial, which was granted, according to court records.

The Justice Department also found that he allegedly supported political assassinations.

“The defendant has used pictures of the President for target practice, expressed support for political assassinations, and recently sought qualifications in sniper-rifle shooting at a local range,” prosecutors wrote. “His release poses an extreme danger to those he lives with, the general community, and also the pretrial officers who will be tasked with periodically inspecting his residence for firearms including dangerous and unstable explosives.”

Spafford is on bond pending trial but DOJ is moving to have him locked up.

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(NEW YORK) — Multiple rounds of frigid, arctic air could sweep across the eastern half of U.S. in the coming weeks, ushering in an abnormally cold start to 2025.

The first blast of bitter cold hits the Northern Plains and the Midwest on Wednesday and Thursday and then reaches the Northeast by the end of this week.

The surge of arctic air will likely be the start of multiple back-to-back cold blasts lasting throughout much of January, unleashing freezing temperatures across a large swath of the country.

Beginning next week, the polar vortex will likely trigger even colder air across the eastern half of the U.S.

The polar vortex lives in the upper atmosphere and is located near the North Pole in the arctic. When the polar vortex is strong, it locks the cold air in the arctic. When the polar vortex gets weaker, or breaks up, it unleashes cold air to the south.

Temperatures will likely be below average throughout most of January for the eastern half of the U.S., especially the East Coast.

It is too early to know exactly how cold it will get, but there could be dangerously freezing temperatures for millions.

With the surge in cold temperatures, odds favor more precipitation falling as snow rather than rain in many spots.

A large, fast-moving storm may bring snow to parts of the Midwest and severe thunderstorms to the South early next week. Some of that snow may reach the mid-Atlantic, as well.

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